'IT Welcome to Derry' Review: Pennywise Returns for a Chilling Yet Uneven Ride Through Stephen King’s Nightmare Town

Grab your red balloons, horror fans. The creepiest clown in pop culture is back in IT Welcome to Derry, HBO’s ambitious prequel series that dives deep into the origin of Pennywise and the cursed Maine town that just can’t catch a break. Set in 1962, the show attempts to unravel the twisted history behind the malevolent entity that has haunted Stephen King readers and moviegoers for decades. It’s stylish, atmospheric, and full of wicked nostalgia but like any trip to Derry, it comes with a few unsettling bumps in the road.

The first thing that stands out about IT Welcome to Derry is its confidence. Executive producers Andy and Barbara Muschietti, the same creative duo behind the 2017 and 2019 IT films, aren’t afraid to go all in on expanding King’s universe. The show paints Derry as a picture-perfect American town hiding a festering darkness, and that aesthetic works beautifully. Think vintage cars, pastel diners, and an undercurrent of quiet dread that seeps through every frame. The production design nails the retro vibe so perfectly you can almost smell the cigarette smoke and moral repression.

What really hooks you, though, is the sense that Derry itself is alive. The series wisely shifts its focus from jump scares to slow-burn horror, exploring how evil infects an entire community. It also adds social commentary to the mix, touching on race, class, and fear of the unknown, themes that feel eerily relevant in 2025. The subplot involving the Hanlon family and a young Dick Hallorann (yes, that Dick Hallorann from The Shining) gives the show unexpected emotional weight. It’s the kind of storytelling that makes you lean in closer, even as you feel that familiar shiver crawl up your spine.

Now, let’s talk about the clown in the room. IT Welcome to Derry offers glimpses of Pennywise that will thrill fans, though it never fully demystifies the creature’s origins. The result is a mix of intrigue and frustration. Some moments are pure nightmare fuel, haunting, grotesque, and deliciously disturbing. Others feel like déjà vu, as if the show is pulling from the same bag of tricks that worked in the films but doesn’t quite land with the same impact. The CGI occasionally goes overboard, trading practical scares for glossy spectacle, which undercuts the tension the series works so hard to build.

The pacing also wobbles. At eight episodes, the show sometimes feels stretched thin, juggling multiple storylines that don’t always connect cleanly. For every chilling moment of small-town paranoia, there’s a subplot that meanders or fizzles out before it can truly hit. It’s the classic prestige horror problem: big on atmosphere, light on payoff. But even when the scares slow down, the world of Derry remains magnetic, a place where horror lurks in every drainpipe and behind every polite smile.

Performance-wise, the cast delivers across the board. Taylour Paige and Chris Chalk bring heart and gravitas, while Madeleine Arthur’s eerie innocence adds layers of unease. The ensemble feels grounded, even when the plot starts veering into cosmic horror territory. And yes, Bill Skarsgård’s shadow looms large, even if he’s not front and center.

So, is IT Welcome to Derry worth your time? Absolutely, with caveats. It’s a richly designed, occasionally brilliant expansion of Stephen King’s most haunting creation, but it never quite escapes the shadow of its cinematic predecessors. The scares may not always hit as hard, yet the atmosphere, themes, and lore make it a must-watch for King devotees and horror completists alike.

In the end, IT Welcome to Derry proves one thing: evil never dies in Derry. It just finds new ways to float back to the surface. Whether you’re here for the lore, the nostalgia, or the clown, there’s plenty to sink your teeth into. Just don’t expect to sleep easy afterward.

Final Verdict: Stylish, ambitious, and occasionally chilling, IT Welcome to Derry expands Stephen King’s nightmare universe with flair, even if it sometimes gets lost in its own fog. Three and a half red balloons out of five.